Just getting back into subbuteo after many a year. Had an email exchange with an old friend the other day about the league we had as kids.
For a couple of years it was a great league - we had a regular season, a summer holiday "world cup", and a cup. I think in the last year we had a first and second division with promotion and relegation...don't think we ever finished that season before we all got distracted by girls and motorbikes and other things.
Took me a while but I remembered my first team name - West Valley County. Team had a few player names from the Roy of the Rovers of the late 70's - we had to institute a league rule that nobody could have Roy Race on their team because he was on everybody's initial squad.
Really great memories.
Just curious, what were some of your fictional teams from the past.
Mark

Most of my early teams began life by being featured in comic strips in the early sixties. Melchester Rovers have survived for generations, and everyone's heard of them, but I remember reading about Pressley Rangers, Blackton Rovers, Hinton United, Hodwell Town and Brimpton Rovers. The last two being smaller clubs, I recall.

One of the reasons for starting my league was because several of these clubs were winning the League or Cup, but never played each other. It just seemed a good idea at the time to match them all up.

Eastroke United were added, as opponents of Melchester. (I must have misread the name initially but that is what has survived.) Hodwell 'dropped' the Town, and Blackton Rovers later went bankrupt, re-emerging as Blackridge Town.

I then added my own creations; Aberdither United, Iveley Park, Mill Town, Mill Athletic and Bullford, and the names have stuck.

Finally, I used to live in Brookfield Avenue, another name which has survived all these years.

My English and Welsh clubs are a combination of names from comics /holiday destinations/obscure names from maps and several specially devised to represent clubs in the real world ... The Scottish clubs less so from comics and more so from obscure hamlets on maps and names specially thought up for the purpose ...

BlackpoolRock wrote:Most of my early teams began life by being featured in comic strips in the early sixties. Melchester Rovers have survived for generations, and everyone's heard of them, but I remember reading about Pressley Rangers, Blackton Rovers, Hinton United, Hodwell Town and Brimpton Rovers. The last two being smaller clubs, I recall.

One of the reasons for starting my league was because several of these clubs were winning the League or Cup, but never played each other. It just seemed a good idea at the time to match them all up.

Eastroke United were added, as opponents of Melchester. (I must have misread the name initially but that is what has survived.) Hodwell 'dropped' the Town, and Blackton Rovers later went bankrupt, re-emerging as Blackridge Town.

I then added my own creations; Aberdither United, Iveley Park, Mill Town, Mill Athletic and Bullford, and the names have stuck.

Finally, I used to live in Brookfield Avenue, another name which has survived all these years.

We use Melchester City and Rovers to represent the obvious big two 25 miles down the road ... Eastoke United wearing a ref 4 are the alter egos
of another easy to spot current topflight side I happened to visit with The Clarets a couple of Saturday's ago while Hodwell Town live on nearby o'ert border as we use them as our version of Halifax ... Blackton also feature but as an Albion - Brighton.

Top five most of the season in Division Two Steve .. Currently Third behind Blackport and Melchester Rovers game 22 this Saturday so we are starting the 2nd half of the campaign ... Promoted back to Two last season reached the League Cup quarter finals this time so doing well .. Saturday 17th a full house as Melchester Rovers visit the coast

BlackpoolRock wrote:Brilliant! A perfect use of Subbuteo in a traditional and creative way.

Thanks,the English League has been running since 1955-56 growing from one to the current five divisions which we run between us .. my two Scottish Divisions are celebrating a birthday this time as I started playing them back in 1976-77 ..